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Award winning approach to energy efficiency

So, what does a Facilities Manager (FM) do? I hear you ask. And what in the world does it have to do with sustainability at Virgin Media? Well, day-to-day it is my responsibility to ensure the smooth running of the office and this touches on a myriad of things - from, overseeing the efficient operation of the national switchboard team, to ensuring our waste management, heating and lighting systems are all operating optimally.

A huge part of what I do involves resolving problems and preventing inefficiencies within the office and no two days are ever the same. The variety of my day-to-day role along with the opportunity of working with a dedicated team of colleagues is a real highlight of my job and most recently I’ve got to work quite closely with the Sustainability and Quality Assurance Teams to streamline our Environmental Management System here at Hook.

This system helps us manage our day-to-day environmental impacts according to ISO14001 guidelines. For Virgin Media, this means putting procedures in place to ensure on-going compliance with legislation and making sure we are continuously improving in this area. Everyone has a part to play in taking responsibility for the way we operate our business and even the smallest of actions can add up to something really big.

Most recently we’ve been working to raise awareness about energy efficiency in our office sites through our internal comms channels and within individual team meetings across the business but there’s also a role for technology to play in helping us manage our energy performance better. With this in mind we’ve kicked off a Workplace Transformation Project which will upgrade all PCs and laptops replacing the oldest, least energy efficient, hardware with more advanced operating systems. Our new PCs are configured to go into sleep mode after a period of inactivity and all new hardware will now shut down cleanly by simply pressing the power button.

We’re also looking at other ways to drive energy efficiency in our business – like with our lighting systems. At Hook we’re already making savings in electricity consumption with the introduction of passive infrared motion-sensors which will automatically turn the lighting off when no one’s in the office.

To find out more about all the ways we’re working to manage our energy consumption more efficiently, check out this article. Or why not join our Head of Energy, Richard Cliff, as he takes you on a journey through the electronic highways and byways of Virgin Media's new national energy management system.